Ever been to Bolivia?

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2009 7:21 am

So I was just in La Paz (Bolivia) and had a great time other than a little sick from the altitude. Beautiful city, wonderful culture and I highly recomend it to everyone now. Plus its super cheep.

Whilst there I found that a large number of travelers like to lament on the loss of the Ketchwa culture. Many of them telling me outright that they feel guilty for exploiting the indigenous people. The thing is though that everywhere you go there is a little child in traditional dress holding a lama or a baby sheep selling pictures of themselves with you in it. Also, every tour you go on to the ruins or local villages there are people making you feel obligated to buy their wares.

So if they are living and dressing the in the traditional way because it gives us the experience we want and we are buying all the little trinkets that we are never going to wear or use back home, then...Who's exploiting who?

I am curious about peoples thoughts on the decline of indigenous cultures. My thoughts are that as long as we don't forget the past ways there is no reason not to move forward, after all we all have the same needs and wants. No one seems to have any problem with native "north" americans wearing jeans and Tommy Hillfigure so who are we to get upset about the natives to other countries wearing Diesel jeans or Abercrombie shirts?

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2009 7:25 am

Cant go back, none of us can go back. It's all about the here an' now an' what's for tomorrows dinner.

A sad fact, bro.

Interestin' topic tho'.

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2009 3:18 pm

I don't think it's exploitation either way. Tourism is how these people make money to survive. It's the same in pretty much any poor South American country. Look at the Mayan culture in Mexico. I'm surprised to hear that tourism is big in Bolivia. I would think all the political problems would deter tourism.

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2009 3:23 pm

weirdobeardo wrote:

I don't think it's exploitation either way. Tourism is how these people make money to survive. It's the same in pretty much any poor South American country. Look at the Mayan culture in Mexico. I'm surprised to hear that tourism is big in Bolivia. I would think all the political problems would deter tourism.

I was there in 1975 and got completly strung out on the good stuff (Pink Bolivian Flake Cocaine), what a party!! don't remember much of anything else.

Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 7:19 am

???

Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 8:04 am

munchkin1989 wrote:

???

Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2009 9:20 am

nothing wrong with going forward , but i agree we still need our history , who , what , when , how .....

if we all get lost in the future projects we will never remember the past , i find culture and history very interesting and to a agree we need it to help build a future ...if we go wrong we go back and start again ...

bit like the pyramids no one is sure how they got there or when they was built.... stonehenge ...and many more things that have been forgoten ...

but the real question is " if these things had not been built , would we be any wiser today " ...??

there is a reason why these things were built or done ..

but its the same with nasa and other projects, countrys... , we are spending millions trying to discover space yet percent of earth isnt actually discoverd ... we are always finding new breeds of animals or bacteria ...

i may be going of topic a bit so ill leave it there lol

everyone is running before they learn to walk .. ( thats a saying )